Did I Say That Out Loud?
by TurboNerdQueen
Summary: ((Mako and Korra meet in the hospital))


He had been with the staff at least a year and was still considered 'rookie' in their eyes. They passed down the dirty jobs to Mako, even one of the newer recruits who was too smug and full of himself for his own good. Mako just accepted the different jobs they gave him; after all it was more money in his pocket, but today he was considering drawing the proverbial line in the sand at the request the other nurse gave him.

"Come again?"

The stout older woman behind the nurses station sighed, looking up from one of her files and staring at him pointedly.

"Hasook called in sick, so I'm giving you his patient today. Room four-o'-nine."

"Can't you give it to-"

"Look rookie, you're the only one on this shift who has the time to take up another patient." She thumbed through a stack of folders on the desk next to her before handing him one she picked out. "Be careful though, she's been cranky today."

Mako stared at the folder like it would bite him, taking it begrudgingly and flipping through the paperwork inside with a scowl.

"When is she not?" He asked, already moving towards the designated room. He was only a few feet from the doorway when he heard someone inside the room start to get vocal.

"When in the hell can I get out of here? The least you people can do is give me some actual clothes to wear instead of these paper rags. I'm freezing my ass off!"

Mako stood outside the room, steeling himself for what would undoubtedly be a fiery confrontation before walking into the room with a forced smile.

"Hello, I'm here to check your-"

"Thank fucking God, someone heard me. Listen, I want to talk to your supervisor about some subpar treatment and… wait, you aren't that whiny one." The sole occupant in the room had difficulty pushing herself up on the bed, her hand catching on the thin nasal cannula she wore and tugging it. Her short hair was disheveled and her complexion was pale, all of which looked out of place with the burning fire in her blue eyes. She stared at Mako intensely, her brows furrowing in confusion.

"Who the hell are you?"

"Hasook is sick today, so I'm your caretaker for the evening. My name is Mako and right now we need to check your vitals." He said, moving across the room to her side. He readjusted the tubing around her ears- something that she let him know pissed her off- before reaching for the pressure cuff in one of his pockets.

"Why the hell do you have to do this? I'm still obviously alive for the time being." She grumbled, watching him wrapping the cuff around one of her arms. All he responded with was a hum under his breath, toning her out and doing his work.

"BP is a little low." He took the cuff off and went for the stethoscope around his neck, placing the end of it against her chest. "Have you been able to keep anything down today?"

"You seriously expect me to eat-"

"Deep breath if you can."

She did as instructed with a frown cast his way. "You expect me to seriously eat the shit they serve me? I bet cat food is better than that slop."

Mako finished up quickly, writing down her results in her file before tinkering with the beeping machines around her. He just wanted to hurry and get out of the room before he said something he would regret. "Looks like you're scheduled for another round of chemo soon. Bet you're excited."

"I can barely fucking contain myself." She snapped, glaring up at him darkly before slouching back into the bed. "Maybe if I'm lucky I'll starve before they put me back in that heap of junk."

"Maybe if I'm lucky you'll get passed on to someone else here and stop bitching at everything I do."

 _And there it is._

"The fuck you just say?"

The room fell into a heavy silence. Mako was too worried to look back at the patient, already kissing his decent paycheck goodbye and thinking of how he would explain this to his grandmother.

"What's your name?"

She sounded deceptively calm, and even as he turned around to face her slowly, she didn't seem like she was going to rip him to shreds. If anything, the way she was looking at him reminded Mako of a lab tech studying something under a slide. He wasn't sure what was worse.

"…Mako."

She was quiet, looking him up and down for several agonizingly long seconds before flashing him a crooked grin. It was something only a devil would wear before someone signed away their soul.

"Well _Mako_ , you bring me some actual food and I'll keep quiet about your little tantrum."

He stared at her in disbelief, watching as she relaxed in her bed and grinned up at him. She was… she was fucking blackmailing him. It wouldn't be the first time that his mouth landed him in trouble, but this was ridiculous.

"You're joking, right?"

"Does a quarter-pounder with no cheese and fries sound like a joke to you?"

Mako ran a hand down his face and threw his head back to stare at the ceiling, suppressing a groan before looking back at her. Earlier she was comparing the hospital food to canned cat food, and now he was reliving his days as a goddamn carhop.

"You sure you don't want Fancy Feast instead, Miss?" If possible, her smile grew wider, her eyes bright in humor and her cheeks catching a hint of color. She was actually cute for being such a pain in the ass.

"You can call me Korra, and I think I'll pass on the cat chow this time."


End file.
